The Crow: Dark Lightning
by Shinkou Makurayami
Summary: AU. Ebon brings another Dark Matter machine out of cold storage. In the process of arming it, Static is killed by Ebon's new friends. All hope seems lost until one night.
1. Awakening

Disclaimer - I don't own Static Shock or any of its characters. I also don't own The Crow or any of its characters.

It was a dark and dreary night in the equally dark and dreary city of Dakota. It was raining outside and seemed as if it would never end. Most people were inside. The animals as well were inside, trying to stay out of the rain. But there was one animal that wasn't inside. A crow. It effortlessly glided through the rain, above the city buildings. It landed on top of a building and let out a squawk. It then glided down into the cemetery that was next to the building.

The cemetery was a dark, almost evil place. The smell of death was thick in the air. The crow flew down and landed on a tombstone. It let out another squawk. The tombstone had an engraving on it.

VIRGIL HAWKINS

STATIC

"WON'T BE FORGOTTEN"

The crow let out another squawk. Suddenly there was movement under the ground. A scream shot up from the ground. The movements under the ground grew more frantic. Suddenly a black lightning bolt shot up, displacing the dirt. There was a sound of wood breaking and a figure pulled himself out of the hole. He was clad in a suit with a tie on. His hair was over his face, soaked by the rain.

Virgil looked at the crow. It flapped its wings and flew from the graveyard. Virgil followed it, stumbling as he walked. As he walked towards the cemetery exit he passed his mom's grave. He stumbled and his hand grabbed the tombstone to steady himself. His mind was suddenly attacked by a memory.

"_Hey mom. It's me. Just came by to say hey," Virgil said as he sat down on the grass in front of his mother's tombstone._

Virgil reeled away from the tombstone. He was even more scared and confused now. But for some reason he knew that he had to follow the crow. He continued walking once out of the cemetery. He didn't know where he was going. While walking he had a flashback.

"_Hey, Gear, it's all clear on this end," said Static into his shock-box as he flew through the city. He looked at Dakota. It was a really nice night out. This is what he loved; patrolling on a nice night when there wasn't any criminals to bust. Just being in the air was enough._

"_Well, you need to be over here. There seems to be some type of robbery under way. It's on the corner of 13th and Young Street, by the docks," Gear's reply came over the small two-way radio. _

"_I'll be right there," Static said. He slipped the radio into his jacket and pulled a U-turn. He then crouched low and shot through the air towards the robbery location._

The crow that Virgil had been following suddenly came to a stop. It landed on the steps of a house. Virgil looked up and recognized the house. It was his house. He stumbled up the steps and opened the door. The door opened, swinging on just one hinge. Virgil walked in and looked around the house. The house was a mess. There was broken furniture and trash everywhere. Virgil had an odd feeling that it was somehow his fault. He began walking up the stairs to his room.

_Static slowed down a bit as he neared the robbery site. It was some kind of chemical plant. Static had no idea why someone would want to rob a chemical plant. He lowered himself to the ground and picked up his flying disk, slipping it into his jacket as he walked. He walked through the doorway, the door was lying next to it, and began making his way through the complex. Suddenly he heard a sound behind him. Static spun around and came face to face with a Caucasian man who was wearing a black trench coat with a red shirt underneath and some jeans. He had white hair the fell to his shoulders and a pair of dark sunglasses on. He looked like he was in his early twenties._

"_You must be Static," the man said. His voice was very deep and rumbled as he talked._

"_The one and only," Static replied. The man raised a fist and swung. As his fist flew through the air it grew to the size of the man's head. Static jumped back and barely avoided the blow. The man hit the wall and broke a giant hole in it. Static backed up a bit more, his hands up and ready, both of them glowing with purple electricity. The man lunged forward at Static. Static shot a blast of electricity at the man, pushing him backwards and slamming into a wall._

"_Heavyfist, what the hell's going on?" came a voice from around the corner. A black man dressed in a gray shirt and black pants came from around the corner. He also had on dark sunglasses and some black gloves. He had a heavy jaw and his head was shaved. He looked to be in his early twenties as well._

"_I can handle it Slither," Heavyfist grunted as he pulled himself off the ground. His glasses had been knocked off and Static looked into his eyes. They were yellow with a small, almost cat-like pupil. Static knew them eyes. He had seen them before._

"_Night-breed," Static whispered._

Virgil walked into his father's room. It was torn up like the rest of the house. On the floor was the picture of his mother that his dad had always kept on his bedside table. It was bent and there was broken glass on and around it. Virgil bent down to pick it up. As he did he cut himself on the glass. He looked at the cut and watched as it healed itself in a matter of seconds. Virgil picked up the picture and looked at it for a few minutes. He then got up and walked into the next room.

_The man known as Slither walked in front of Heavyfist. He slipped off his gloves and sunglasses and put them into his pocket._

"_I'll take care of this one," he said. Suddenly his hands began to mold into a different shape. The man's face did as well. Static watched in horror. When the man was done his hands were jet-black snakes' heads and his face looked the same, except bigger. All the heads had the menacing yellow eyes._

"_Your ass is mine now!" he hissed. He lunged towards Static, all the mouths showing big fangs. Static shot some lightning at him and ducked. Slither flew over Static, but got a hold of his jacket. Static quickly slipped it off. Using his powers he made it fly at Slither and tangle him up. It wouldn't last long, but it would buy Static some time. _

_He spun around...and was hit by Heavyfist. Luckily, it only hit him in the right arm, but there was a loud crunching sound and an immense pain shot through Static's arm. Static jumped back and dodged another blow. He shot lightning at the man and jumped to the side, dodging again. Static spotted a pipe on the ceiling. As Heavyfist swung again at him, Static used his powers to rip the pipe off the ceiling and bringing it down on Heavyfist's head with as much strength as he could muster._

_Heavyfist fell to the ground, stunned. Static walked over him. After checking him he began to run down the hallway._

Virgil stumbled into the next room. It was his sister's room. It too was a wreck. But there was one thing that was still up. One wall was covered in newspaper articles. It appeared that they had been cut out and collected. Virgil looked at one of them. "STATIC KILLED," it read.

_Static ran down the hallway, his right arm limply swinging as he ran. The hallway opened up to a large room. There were many different containers, each containing a different chemical Static guessed. There was a big computer in the middle of the room. At the controls was Ebon. Static tried to sneak up on him but his broken arm bumped a piece of metal off a table, making it fall to floor. Ebon spun around and saw Static._

"_So, you've met my new friends?" he asked smugly._

"_Yeah, I've met both of them," Static replied. His left hand was now glowing, lightning surrounding it._

"_Oh, but what about the third?" Ebon said. A woman stepped out from behind a container. She looked liked she was of Japanese descent and had black hair that fell over part of her face and flowed to the small of her neck. She was wearing a pair of very tight leather pants and a tight, short-sleeved black shirt that had a red gash printed on it. She also had on fish-nettings on the part of her arms that wasn't covered by the shirt. She appeared to be in her late-teens and her eyes were the same yellow as the rest of the night breed._

"_Don't move," she said. She extended her arm out in front of her and pointed her hand in the gun position, her index finger pointing right at Static._

"_And what are you going to do to stop me?" Static shouted as he lashed out, sending a bolt of lightning at the girl. The girl dodge-rolled out of the way and pointed her finger at Static. There was a gunshot and a bullet flashed out of her finger and shot Static in the left leg. Static felt his leg cripple and collapsed to the ground._

"_This is Bullet," Ebon said. He was standing above Static. "And she's my favorite out of my three new friends." Bullet let out a small smile. _

"_So Static, what do we do now?"_

Virgil let out a shout of rage. He swung at the wall and tore the newspaper articles from it. He shouted and swung again and again. One newspaper article floated past him. "CITY IS CHAOS, SKY TURNED BLACK"

"_What are you planning," Static grunted. Talking was becoming harder to do._

"_Remember that time I tried to cover the city in Dark Matter? What none of you knew is that I had two machines built. I kept one locked away, ready to use it at the right time. I went under and made some new friends and decided now was the right time. All I need are the chemicals to use it now," Ebon said. "And your not going to stop me this time." He looked at Bullet and nodded._

_Bullet pointed at Static's head. "Good-bye," she whispered sweetly. There was gunshot, a flash of light, then everything went black._

Virgil stumbled back and looked at the bed in his sister's room. On the headboard was a mask. It was the mask used to represent sadness in plays and drama. It was white and had its lips and the area around its eyes black. There were spike-like lines coming from the top and the bottom of the black around his eyes. The sides of his lips were also painted in a frown.

Virgil picked it up and walked over to the other side of the room. He walked to the cabinet and ripped it open. Inside were brushes and assorted paints. Virgil opened the white and smeared it on his face. He opened the black and colored his lips and the area around his eyes. He drew the spikes coming from the top and bottom of the black area around his eyes. Then he drew the ends of his lips to curve upwards into an evil smile. He threw the paint at the wall and walked across the hall into his room.

He ripped the drawers out of the dresser and tore his suit off. He slipped on some black pants and put on some black boots that were at the back of his closet. He looked above his bed and saw that his black Static shirt was hanging from the wall, framed. Virgil guessed his dad or sister must have put it there after he had died. Virgil walked over to his bed and jumped on top of it. He smashed the fame opened and pulled the shirt on.

Virgil walked over to his window and opened it. The clouds were clearing but it was still dark outside. He looked up and saw that the sky was black. The crow flew up to him and landed on his shoulder. Static leapt out of the window and on the next roof. An evil laugh escaped from his throat as he leapt from roof to roof.

In Sharon's room the paint on the wall had dried. It was in the shape of a crow.

Ending Notes - This chapter is kind of long. I don't know if I'll be able to make all the chapters as long. Also, there were a lot of flashbacks in this chapter. I hope there isn't to many, but I wanted to tell how he was killed and what's going on. The next chapters won't have so many, I promise.


	2. First Blood

Disclaimer - I don't own Static Shock, any of its characters, The Crow, or any of its characters.

Heavyfist, no longer wearing his glasses, walked down a street in Dakota. The rain had stopped, but he was still wet. He ran a hand through his hair and shook it. As he walked a little boy about the age of eight or so ran out in front of him, chasing a ball. Heavyfist abruptly stopped. The little boy ran into Heavyfist and fell backwards onto his butt.

"Boy, do you know who I am?" Heavyfist asked. Just as he did, a woman came running after the boy.

"Oh, Heavyfist," she pleaded, "please don't hurt my boy. He didn't know better. He's still young."

"He's old enough to learn some goddamn respect," Heavyfist shouted. His right fist grew to the size of his head and he swung it at the boy. It hit the boy's left arm and there was a loud cracking sound. The boy instantly began to cry and held his arm. The mother held him close and whispered to him, trying to shush him.

"Now thank me, bitch," Heavyfist said smugly. There were a few seconds of silence. "I said thank me that I didn't kill the little fucker!" Heavyfist yelled at the woman.

"Th-th-thank you, Heavyfist, f-for your m-mercy," the woman sobbed.

"That's better," Heavyfist replied. "Now get the hell out of my way." The mother grabbed her child and ran the direction she had come from. Heavyfist let out a sigh and continued walking. "When are they gunna learn?"

Slither sat in a chair in Ebon's office. It was a big room with a desk at the front and five chairs scattered around. Slither too no longer wore the sunglasses that he used to require. Across from him sat Bullet. She also didn't have on any glasses. The door opened and Heavyfist walked into the room. Slither looked up.

"What took you so long?" he asked. "The meeting was supposed to start five minutes ago."

"I had to solve a little problem," Heavyfist snickered.

"Do that on your own time, not mine," a voice came from behind the desk. Ebon rose up from the floor, coming through a portal that he had created. A black girl rose up with him. She looked to be in her late-teens and was wearing tattered rags that barely covered up her figure. Her hair was a mess and looked like it had once been in two pigtails but was now thrown over her face.

"Why did you bring the bitch to the meeting," Bullet sneered.

"She needs to be trained," Ebon replied. "But, back to the matter at hand. We need to step up around here. We've been having instances of attacks and resistance that need to be put out."

"That damn Gear keeps mixing things up," Slither said. "I don't know why we haven't killed him yet."

"Maybe because every time we try he has some piece of shit to get away from us," Bullet said.

"No matter," Ebon cut in. "He's nothing but a tricky bastard without Static. We'll get him in time."

"Right. So, we can go now?" Heavyfist asked.

"Last to come, first to leave, what do you have to do Heavyfist?" Slither mocked.

"Damn-it Slither! Get off my back," Heavyfist yelled as his fist grew in size.

Bullet let out a sigh of disgust. "Will you two stop acting like children?" She got up and walked out of the room. Slither and Heavyfist looked at each other and burst out laughing.

"So, the usual?" Heavyfist asked as he got up.

"Yeah, see-ya tonight," Slither replied. They got up and walked out the door. Once through Ebon's house and on ground level they went their separate ways. Ebon sat behind his desk and watched. The girl besides him began to inch away from him. Ebon's arm stretched out and grabbed her and deposited her on his lap.

"And where do you think you're going?" Ebon asked as he fondled one of he girl's breasts.

"If my brother was here you wouldn't dare treat me this way," the girl spit in Ebon's face. Ebon backhanded the girl across the face.

"Don't you dare disrespect me, bitch," Ebon said, his voice still calm and cool. "Your brother was nothing and now he's dead. And you're mine." Ebon stood up and began to sink into the floor through another portal. He took the girl with him.

On the street, Heavyfist walked with no destination to really go to. He was board and decided that he needed some booze. He walked into a nearby liquor store and walked out with a big brown bag that had some bottles in it. He then walked down a nearby alley to enjoy his drink. What he didn't see was that on the roof across the street there was a black figure watching his every move. With a laugh the figure launched himself across the street, onto the roof of the liquor store. The laugh followed him and echoed through the streets.

Heavyfist looked up as he heard the laugh. 'Probably just some drugged up asshole,' he thought. With a shrug he took a swig of his drink. But suddenly the laughter echoed again. But this time it sounded louder. Heavyfist continued drinking. Then the laughter rose up again. This time it was so close that Heavyfist stood up. "Who's there!" he shouted.

"Death," came the reply. It seemed to come from all sides. Heavyfist's fist both grew to the size of a small trashcan and he held them up, ready for whatever is was that was out there. Suddenly there was a flash of lightning. Heavyfist turned to see what it was.

But the figure was behind him. Static punched Heavyfist in the back, black lightning swirling around his hand. Heavyfist let out a grunt and turned around, swinging his fist at whatever had just attacked him. Static ducked under the giant fist and delivered an electric upper cut to the Night-breed's face.

Heavyfist stumbled backwards and looked at his attacker. "What the fuck are you suppose to be?" he sneered.

"Death," he said again. He jumped up over another swing from Heavyfist.

"That's right, you're gunna die!" Heavyfist shouted, working himself into frenzy. He began to swing and jab at a faster rate. Static kept backing up, jumping and ducking under the blows. Heavyfist kept advancing, swinging and swinging. Static let out a small poke of lightning, hitting Heavyfist in the face. Heavyfist let out a shout of rage and continued advancing. Finally, Static was backed up against a wall. Heavyfist let out a shout of rage and triumph as he swung his fist with all his might.

The fist hit Static square in the face. Because of its size it also it him in the neck and part of his shoulder. There were multiple cracking sounds and Static fell down to the ground. Heavyfist's hands returned to normal and he stood over the body of the man he had just slain.

"Now who's 'Death'?" Heavyfist sneered. He turned around to go back to his drink when the laughter started. It started quiet but became louder and louder until Heavyfist couldn't stand it. He spun and around and watched, horrified, as Static picked himself up. There were multiple cracking sounds as the bones just broken reset themselves and healed. Heavyfist backed up.

"W-what are you?" he asked.

"Death," Static replied with an evil smile curling his lips. He leapt up and delivered a roundhouse kick to Heavyfist's head, black lightning swirling around his leg. Heavyfist stumbled backwards and clutched his face, which was now seared and burned from the electricity. Static then held out his hand and caught Heavyfist with his power. He pinned him against the wall of the alley. With the other hand he brought the bag over to him using his powers.

"So, how long has it been, Heavyfist?" Static asked. As he talked he pulled a bottle out of the bag. He smashed the bottom and held up the bottle, observing the sharp edges.

"H-how l-long since w-what?" Heavyfist asked, almost peeing his pants.

"Why, how long since you killed me?" Static asked with an evil smile. He threw the bottle up into the air and caught it with his powers. He then shot it forward, shoving it through Heavyfist's hand and into the wall behind him. Heavyfist let out a scream of agony.

"I-I-I don't even know you, man," Heavyfist grunted.

"Really? Then let me refresh your memory." Static broke another bottle and shoved it through Heavyfist's other hand. Another scream ripped through Heavyfist's throat and into the night sky. "The chemical factory. You fought me and broke my arm," Static said calmly.

Heavyfist looked at the symbol on the man's shirt. Then it hit Heavyfist. "S-Static? B-b-but Bullet k-killed you," he whispered.

"Yes, she did. But now I'm back from the hells that she sent me to," Static replied as he broke another bottle. He shoved it through Heavyfist's leg. Heavyfist shouted again. "Where do I find the others," Static asked.

"Bullet comes and goes as she pleases. Slither's going to meet me at Ridley's Bar in an hour," Heavyfist wept. He knew he was going to die.

"What about Ebon?" Static asked, shoving another bottle through Heavyfist's other leg.

"He lives in the mansion on top of the Ebon Tower. Tallest skyscraper in town," Heavyfist said in one breath.

"I must thank you Heavyfist. You've been so helpful. And now let me repay you," Static sneered. He took the last bottle and broke it. He levitated it into the air and sent it flying. It landed in the middle of Heavyfist's chest. There were several cracking sounds and Heavyfist let out a bloodcurdling scream. But then all was silent. The crow flew down from the building and landed on Static's shoulder.

With a wave of his hand, Static dismissed his power over Heavyfist. He fell to the ground with a sickening thud. Static bent down and pulled the trench coat off of him. "I like this coat," he murmured. "Mind if I use it?" Static then bent down and took some blood dripping from the night-breed and put it on his fingers. He drew the symbol of the crow on the wall next to him.

"Time to be going," Static said with a smile. He leapt into the air and propelled himself higher with his powers and landed on the roof. He jumped from roof to roof, into the darkness. An evil laughter followed him and echoed through all the streets.


	3. Snake Bite

Disclaimer - I don't own Static, The Crow, or any of their characters.

A figure moved through the streets, never coming out of the shadows. He ran across a street and under a streetlight, momentarily revealing his features. He had on a green and white suit with a green mask over his face. He also had on some type of roller skates and a metal dome clamped on to his back. He was Gear. His hair had grown a bit longer in the past year and now was down to the middle of his neck. He also had a small bit of blonde scruff growing on his chin.

Gear slowed his pace as he entered an alley. But then he suddenly stopped. Lying in the middle of the alley was Heavyfist. Gear grabbed a round orb out of his belt and held it, waiting for Heavyfist to make the first move. But he didn't. He just laid there. Cautiously, Gear walked to Heavyfist. When he got closer he realized he was dead. He had a smashed bottle shoved through each arm, each leg, and his chest. And there was some weird design drawn on the wall above him.

"What the hell..." Gear muttered to himself. He stood there and tried to figure out how this had happened. As he did, Backpack walked off Gear's back and began walking around Heavyfist's body. A red beam shot out of its eye and moved over Heavyfist. The beam then disappeared and Backpack walked back to Gear's back.

A huge amount of data began to flash in front of Gear's eyes on his green display screen. Gear's eyes lazily observed it until something caught his eye. "Freeze it there," he said to Backpack. The information flow stopped and Gear began reading it again, slowly this time to make sure he hadn't made a mistake.

"...bottles forcefully entered into body; small residue of electric current found on bottles..." Gear shook his head. There was only one person capable of doing something like that. And he was dead. Gear looked at the drawing on the wall. It was in the shape of a crow.

Over at Ridley's Bar, Slither sat on one of the benches and gulped his bear. Heavyfist was late. And not just late, like he usually was, but really late.

'Something is up,' Slither thought. But then he shook his head and laughed. 'Heavyfist just probably got drunk in an alley. It's nothing,' he told himself. With a sigh, Slither got up and walked out of the bar. The bartender walked over and picked up the empty bear bottle. He cursed his job, serving booze to non-paying bang babies who had some of the biggest egos he had ever seen.

With a sigh, he chucked the bottle in the trash. He then pulled out a cigarette and ran a hand through his red and yellow spiked hair. Flicking his thumb, he brought a small flame out. He lit the cigarette, took a large puff, and turned around.

And came face to face with a white and black painted face that had an evil smile on it. The face belonged to a man that was hanging upside down from the ceiling. He smiled as he saw the bartender's fear.

"What the fuck are you!" the bartender shouted as he backed away. A small flame lit up the palm of his right hand.

"What's it been, a year? Imagine you working here. Rather odd," Static said as he dropped to the floor, righting himself midair. A crow swooped down and landed on his shoulder. "Ebon never did like you, though. I suppose it's smart you stay out of his way."

"Man, who the fuck do you think you are!" the bartender shouted.

"That's not important. I want to know where Slither is. Now."

"And why should I tell you!" the bartender shouted and he hurled the flame at Static. The crow flew off of him as fire grew till it was about three feet wide and engulfed Static chest. The bartender smiled. Static smiled back. He punched the bartender in the face with surprising strength and sent him flying over the bar. Then he patted himself till he had put the fire on himself out. He jumped over the bar and picked the bartender up by his shirt. He raised him up till his feet didn't touch the floor.

_A figure clad in black with a hat and collar covering his face stood in the back of a crowd. The crowd was in the cemetery and was standing in front of a casket. Draped over the casket was a white mask that had blue glasses on the top part. The figure took off his hat, revealing red and yellow spiked hair. He bowed his head and then walked away._

"Now, let's try this again. Where's Slither?" Static asked.

"Just left. He was heading towards Main Street," the bartender wheezed. Static nodded and dropped the bartender. "Who are you?"

"I'm surprised you don't recognize my," Static said as he opened his trench coat and showed him the yellow symbol on his shirt. The bartender's eyes widened in recognition.

"It can't be. It couldn't," the bartender rambled on as Static began walking towards the door. The crow flew to Static's shoulder as he walked. Just before he left the bartender yelled at him. "I went to you funeral. I really do respect you, man."

"I know," Static replied back. "Thanks, Hotstreak."

On the street, Slither was walking around Heavyfist's normal prowling grounds. He walked down one alley and saw two men, one on the ground, the other standing above him observing him. As Slither got closer he noticed the two men. The one was Gear. The one on the ground was Heavyfist. And he was dead. Slither let out a yell of rage and began running top speed at Gear. Gear spun around.

"Oh, shit!" he shouted and began skating at top speed away from Slither. Slither kept running after him as he weaved in and out of the many streets and alleys of Dakota. Slither turned around one corner of an alley and saw that Gear was gone. He looked up and saw Gear flying away.

"Fuck!" he yelled at himself. He paced for a few minutes then pulled out his cell phone. He punched in a number and waited for them to pick up.

"Ebon hear," Ebon's voice came over the phone.

"Heavyfist is dead," Slither said abruptly.

"What! How do you know?"

"I saw him. I think it was Gear. He was there when I found Heavyfist's body."

"Son of a bitch. I can't believe it."

"Me neither. Gear actually killed him."

"Actually he didn't," came another voice. Slither dropped his phone and spun around, but saw nothing.

"What was that," Ebon said over the phone. Slither bent down to pick up the phone when he was suddenly kicked. He flew a few feet forward and turned around. In front of him was Static.

"What the fuck do you think you're doing?" Slither yelled. Static smiled an evil smile.

"Killing you," he replied. He shot a black lightning bolt at Slither and sent him flying into a wall. Slither got up and took off his gloves. His face and hands melded into their snake forms. Static just shook his head. Slither lunged at him with a shout of rage. Static dodged punched him in the head. Slither threw another punch but missed again. Static dodged and backed up a step. Slither threw another punch and another, each one backing Static up by one step.

Eventually they were out of the alley. Slither had chased Gear to the docks. And now he was there with Static. Around them were giant cargo boxes, crates, forklifts, and some boats. The docks were abandoned, though, giving them a ghostly feel.

Static jumped up to one of the cargo boxes and started jumping from box to box. Each time he landed he made a loud thumping sound. Slither yelled and started running into the maze of cargo boxes.

"No use hiding, you bastard. I'll kill you eventually," Slither yelled.

"Will you?" a voice echoed back. There was a thump one the box behind Slither. Slither spun around and planted one of his hands' fangs into the cargo box. He pulled it out, leaving four deep holes in the crate.

"Come out you fucker!" Slither shouted.

"You want me? You got me!" Static shouted. He came down on Slither with a bolt of black lightning. It hit Slither squarely in the back. Slither grunted as hundreds of volts racked his body. Static landed on him, forcing him to the ground, then flipped off of him.

_Slither walked into the house, breaking the door as he did. There was a man in the living room. Virgil's dad._

"_What the-" he started but was suddenly cut off by a chair that flew across the room. It caught him in the head and knocked him down to the ground._

"_Isn't this the great Static's house?" Slither asked with a smirk._

"What did you do to the Hawkins?" Static asked, his voice carrying a tone of malice in it.

"Hawk-who?" Slither moaned as he got up.

"The Hawkins!" Static shouted. He drove his fist into Slither's stomach and let out a huge burst of electricity. Slither's body began to smoke a bit. Static dropped him to the ground. "What did you do to the Hawkins? The family of Virgil Hawkins."

"You mean Static's family, don't you," Slither hissed from the ground. "I killed that fat bastard."

"_Get out of my house!" Mr. Hawkins yelled. Slither only laughed at him. He took off his gloves and changed into his snake form._

"_Time to die, fat-ass!" he shouted. He leapt at Virgil's father and caught him by the throat. Mr. Hawkins's eyes filled with fear as Slither slowly squeezed the life from him, the fangs tearing into his throat._

Static stumbled back a few steps in shock. Slither took the chance to get up. He ran towards Static with all his strength and dug his hands' fangs into his arms.

"My fangs are all filled with a poison. You'll be dead in a minute," Slither sneered. Static's body went limp. Slither dropped him to the ground. He began walking away when a hand grabbed his ankle. He turned around.

Static was gripping his ankle from the ground. Slither shrugged. 'Must have snagged me when I dropped him,' he thought. He reached down to free himself when a crow sitting on one of the crates suddenly squawked. Static stood up and picked Slither up from the ground, dangled him there for a few seconds.

"How can you still be-" Slither stared to say. But he was cut off suddenly by Static, who slammed him into the crate by his ankle. He then spun around and slammed Slither into the other crate. Static dropped him to the ground. He bent down and picked up his arms and held Slither's snake hands to his neck.

"Where is my sister!" Static shouted at him. Slither just stared up in shock. "Where is my sister!" Static shouted again as he stared to squeeze Slither's hands around his neck.

"I don't know your...sis...ter..." Slither started talking. But then his eyes caught the yellow lightning symbol underneath Static's trench coat. His eyes widened in terror and recognition. "I-I-I don't know, man!" he shouted, his voice thick with panic and fear.

"Yes, you do," Static replied coldly. He began to squeeze the snake hands around Slither's neck harder.

"E-Ebon's got her! I-I don't know any more!" Slither screamed. Static smiled.

"Good boy. Now, bye-bye," Static whispered. He gave Slither's hands a giant squeeze and heard his neck snap. Static got up and blasted the carcass with a shot of dark electricity. He laughed and began walking away, a crow flying just above him. The evil laughter followed him, echoing through all the docks.


	4. Memories

Disclaimer - I don't own Static Shock, any of its characters, The Crow, or any of its characters

Gear lowered himself to the ground. Backpack had a small camera out and was scanning the nearby area to make sure there was no one around.

'I wonder what stopped Slither," Gear thought to himself. He had managed to get into the air, but as he flew away he had saw a figure sneaking up on Slither. It had also looked like the figure had attacked Slither.

'But that's crazy,' Gear told himself. 'No one in their right mind would challenge Slither. They would have Ebon and the other's crashing down on them.' But then Gear remembered that Heavyfist was dead. Someone was out to get them. Gear shook his head as he touched down on the ground. This was one puzzle he might not be able to figure out.

Gear was in an alley in an abandoned part of Dakota. After the blackout, many had fled for their lives. But then Ebon had closed off the city. Gear walked up to a wall and felt along it. He counted off a few bricks then pressed. The wall slid open just enough for Gear to get through. He walked in, letting wall close behind him.

But there was a dark figure watching him and his movements on top of a building next to the alley. As Gear walked in the figure jumped off the building and landed on the ground. He darted for the wall and caught it right before it closed. The figure pulled and slowly opened the door. He held it open and a bird flew in. The figure then darted in and let the door slam behind him.

Gear heard the door slam and turned around. He couldn't see anything there. Then again, the hallway from the door to his home was dark. Gear stood there and waited. Suddenly something moved. Gear picked up an orb and threw it. It flew towards a crow. But it didn't make it. A black lightning bolt shot out and knocked the orb down. Gear's jaw dropped as Static walked out of the shadows.

"Long time no see," Static said quietly. His voice carried a hint of sadness.

"I knew it was you," Gear replied quietly. Static stepped forward and the two embraced each other in a bear hug. Gear then broke off and started walking towards his home, knowing Static would follow.

"I need some answers," Static said, getting down to business.

"I know, I know. I'll tell you all you need to know when we get to my home." Static nodded and remained silent. After walking for a few more minutes they came to a door. There was a small number pad nest to it. Gear punched in a code and the door's lock clicked. Gear grabbed the handle and opened it. He motioned for Static to come in. Static walked in.

And was suddenly attacked. Static ducked as someone flew over him, his or her foot poised for a kick. He threw up his hand and caught the person with his powers. He then spun and pinned the person to the wall.

"Who the fuck are you?" he fumed, angry at being attacked so suddenly. Gear ran up behind and laid a hand on his shoulder.

"Let her go, it was an accident. We're all a bit tense these days," he said.

"Her...?" Static mused as he dropped her to the ground.

"Yes, 'her'," the female said. Gear walked to the wall and flipped a light switch. The lights came on, revealing a big room that had a table with two chairs, couch, TV (it looked like Gear had built half of it), and a desk that littered with mechanical parts. Static guessed it was Gear's workstation.

There was also a girl standing in the middle of the room. She had one what looked like had once been a red jump suit but was now torn in the knees, elbows and the stomach, revealing her midriff. Her dark hair fell around her face and looked like she tried to keep it neat, but had a hard time doing. But her eyes were what Static instantly recognized. Her eyes were the yellow night-breed.

"Static," Gear said, "you remember Nightingale, don't you?"

_A girl in a red jump suit stepped in front of Static._

"_I'll have to absorb the dark matter while you shut it off," she shouted as a look of concentration came over her face._

"Yeah," Static said as he shook his head, trying to free it of the flashback, "I remember Nightingale."

"Oh my god," Nightingale gasped. She had recognized who Static was. "Y-you're d-dead."

"I still am," Static said. As he spoke the crow flew up and landed on his shoulder. "This bird is my guide threw this world. Or something like that." Static smiled. Nightingale only stepped back and shook her head.

"Don't worry," Gear said as he stepped forward. His arm draped around Nightingale's hip as she clung to him. "He's our friend."

"Right," Nightingale said. She sounded like she was trying to convince herself more then anything else. Static shrugged and flopped on the couch.

"Nice place you got here," Static said.

"It's all we got," Gear replied. "Do you want something to eat or drink?"

"Love to, but can't," Static replied with a grim smile. Gear winced.

"Sorry." He pulled up the two chairs and set them in front of the couch. Nightingale slowly lowered herself into the chair and Gear sat on the other backwards, leaning on the top of the backrest. He lifted off his mask and laid it on the ground next to him.

"I want to know what happened. From the beginning," Static said as he sat up. Gear sigh but nodded and began talking.

"It started back when you and me stopped the dark matter machine. We destroyed it and thought it was over, right? Well, Tech had built two. He just didn't tell us that. Maybe it was his pride, maybe he was too afraid, or maybe he just forgot. Whatever the reason, he didn't tell us and the machine remained hidden. Until Ebon found it. Then he went underground and recruited a three of the most powerful bang-babies ever seen. Bullet, Heavyfist, and Slither.

"Now that he had the team, he decided it was time to put his plan into play. He started snatching up chemicals to power the machine. Since he knew how to work the machine this time, he didn't need Tech. And Tech had no way of telling us that Ebon had found the machine anyways. He was dead. Ebon got the chemicals he wanted to power the machine. And in the process he killed you.

"After he had the chemicals he activated the machine. The sky was completely eclipsed in dark matter. It was chaos. Everyone running everywhere, screaming. Some people got out of the city, but not many. Then Ebon set up the borders. He has a few teams of night-breed patrolling the borders. No one gets in, no one gets out. And in the meantime, the city lives in oppression from Ebon and his thee bang-baby powerhouses."

Static nodded his head, taking in all of the information. "What about the Justice League? Have they tried anything?"

"Well," Gear said shaking his head, "they tried a few attempts, but no results. Dakota is still heavily populated, believe it or not, and the night-breed usually use the population as a shield. And the dark matter messes with most of their powers. Even Superman couldn't do anything without the sun's rays.

"Tell me," Static said slowly, "what happened to my family. I've heard rumors, but..." Gear cringed but started talking anyways.

"The police and ambulance recovered your body after your death. They removed your mask and identified you as Virgil Hawkins. When they did they gave your body to your family. But they also published a story about your death in the newspaper. It was actually a nice article. It praised and thanked you for all of you efforts and victories. But it also did another thing. It told you name to the world.

"After your funeral your house was attacked and ransacked. Your dad...Virg, they killed you dad. Slither did. And your sister went missing. We've heard some rumors that Ebon has her, but we can't confirm anything." Static's face fell into an empty expression. Nightingale looked at Gear, silently asking if there was anything they could do. Gear shook his head with a frown. Static suddenly stood up and started walking towards the door.

"Where are you going?" Nightingale asked.

"Out," Static replied. "I have some things that need to be taken care of." He suddenly stopped by the door.

"_Well, you need to be over here. There seems to be some type of robbery under way. It's on the corner of 13th and Young Street, by the docks," Gear's reply came over the small two-way radio. _

"_I'll be right there," Static said. He slipped the radio into his jacket and pulled a U-turn. He then crouched low and shot through the air towards the robbery location._

"Gear, I have one more question. The night I was killed. You sent me to the docks. I thought you were going to meet me there. What happened?"

Gear looked down at the ground, ashamed at what he was about to say. "I was on my way when I noticed a robbery. Nothing big, just a few small-time crooks holding up an old lady. But they were waving around guns and it looked like it was about to turn nasty. So I stopped and helped her."

Static walked up to Gear and touched his finger to Gear's temple.

"_Give us the money, bitch!" the crook yelled at the old lady. The lady cowered back but held on tightly to her purse, whether out of stubbornness or fear. The crook let out an irritated groan and motioned for his two friends to move up. The two other grabbed the lady and the crook pulled out a gun and pointed it at the lady's head._

"_Drop it," he said, "or else." The woman let out a whimper and frantically looked around. There was no one in sight. The crooked looked at her and smiled. His finger moved to the trigger._

_But suddenly an orb hit his hand and exploded. The orb shot out a dozen metal straps and tied the crook's hand down. He dropped the gun and let out a yelp._

"_Didn't anyone ever tell you to respect your elders," Gear quipped as he flew towards the thieves._

Static nodded and started walking towards the door again. Gear looked up at him.

"I'm sorry, Virg. If I would have been there, maybe, maybe..." Gear fell silent.

"Just tell me one thing," Static asked as he reached for the doorknob. "Did you save the lady?"

"Uh, y-yeah," Gear said, a bit shocked.

"Then it was worth it," Static said. He turned around and smiled at Gear. A genuine smile. "I'll be around." And with that he walked out the door, his crow on his shoulder. Gear just sat there, staring at the door as it shut.

"You ok?" Nightingale quietly asked.

"Yeah," Gear said as a smile slowly crossed his face. "I'm ok."

Ending Notes - It's been a while since I updated. I'm kind of disappointed by lack of reviews, but I suppose that's part of being a newer author. Got to build up my reputation. Anyways, I'm working on the next chapter and will have it up eventually.


	5. Out With a Bang

Disclaimer - I don't own Static Shock, The Crow, or any of the characters affiliated with these two

Bullet walked with a quick pace as she made her way through the streets. According to Ebon, Heavyfist should be around here somewhere. He always had a habit of sitting in some alley drinking himself senseless. Bullet turned into the closest alley and walked into it. There, lying on the ground was the night-breed known as Heavyfist. Or at least his corpse. Shook her head and walked towards the body.

As she neared it she began to notice a few things. One was that Heavyfist had a few bottles shoved through his body. It must have taken quite a force to push a bottle through Heavyfist. Two was that there was an odd symbol drawn on the wall next to the body. It was a crow and it seemed to be drawn in blood.

With a sigh, Bullet walked out of the alley. Slither had broken contact with Ebon suddenly around this area. Ebon had told her to find out what happened to him as well. Bullet began wondering the streets, looking for a clue.

After about 30 minutes, she found a phone on the ground. She picked it up and looked through some of the options on it. Yeah, this was Slither's alright. So he must be around here somewhere. Bullet looked and saw a recent looking scuffmark on the worn out concrete.

'There must have been some type of fight here,' Slither thought. And with that in mind she followed the direction of the mark. She walked through the streets, wandering down a few alleys and side streets as she continued in the same general direction. She eventually got to the docks.

In front of here was a maze of crates. Bullet ran forward, jumped, somersaulted, then flipped forward onto the top of one of the crates. She landed with a thud that echoed through the docks. Looking around, she saw Slither in the maze. Bullet ran forward and jumped to the next crate. She jumped from crate to crate till she came to Slither's body. She jumped off the crate and next to the body.

Slither was in his snake form. He had his own powerful hand-jaws wrapped around his neck and there was a purple-tinted liquid seeping out, mixing with his own blood. 'Probably his poison,' Bullet told herself.

But something disturbed Bullet more then the condition of Slither's death. Slither had the same mark that had been next to Heavyfist's body - the same crow. Bullet knelt down and gently touched the symbol. She instantly withdrew her hand as a small jolt ran through her hand. She looked down and saw a tiny black lightning bolt play across the symbol.

Bullet immediately stood up and pulled out her cell phone. She punched in a number and waited for an answer. There were two rings, then a click as someone picked up.

"Ebon here," Ebon's voice rasped over the phone.

"Ebon, it's Bullet. I just found Slither - he's dead, and so is Heavyfist," Bullet said.

"What the fuck is going on!" Ebon yelled on the other end of the phone. "Two of my best men killed. Just who thinks he can pull such a thing?"

"I don't know, but I got something more interesting to tell you. Look at this." Bullet pointed her phone to the crow symbol on Slither's chest and snapped a picture. She then uploaded it to Ebon.

"So it's a bird, big fucking deal," Ebon said dryly, still obviously irritated.

"Yes, but I found it next to Heavyfist's body, too. And this one's charged with some kind of electrical energy."

"Electrical energy..." Ebon trailed off in thought.

"I have a guess at what this is, but I'm not sure," Bullet continued. "When I was little, before the big-bang, my grandma would tell me a story. It's a legend, one that says that is a man is killed unjustly, he bares with him a great sorrow. Sometimes this sorrow is so great that he is allowed to come back to correct this injustice. His guide is a crow and the man will bear the symbol of the crow."

"So, you're telling me to go on some half-ass tale that some old lady told you? Some tale saying that a man comes back from the dead to 'correct this injustice'?" Ebon mused, slightly entertained by the idea.

"It's the only thing we have right now," Bullet replied. "And Ebon...don't say it's impossible. Till a few years ago, we were thought to be impossible. And don't tell me that magic doesn't exist. The Justice League employs magical forces - so magic must exist."

"You have a point," Ebon replied. He was thinking. Who could come back to kill him? He had killed many people in his day, especially since taking over Dakota a year ago. But who would bear with him such a vengeance that it would allow him to come back from the grave to hunt Ebon and his subordinates. Then it hit him like a ton of bricks.

"Bullet, get back here, now," Ebon ordered. "We need to discuss a few things." There was a click and the phone was hung up.

Bullet sighed and began walking back towards Ebon's safe house. As she walked she felt as if someone was watching her. She spun around but didn't see anyone. With an uneasy feeling, she began walking again. Above her, on the rooftops, a black figure jumped across the buildings, his black trench coat flowing behind him.

Back at his house, Ebon was sitting on his bed, still fuming and in deep thought.

'So he did come back,' he wondered silently. 'I wonder why now. It's been almost a year now. Why did he come back now?' Next to him a figure moved on the bed. It was the girl with the tattered clothes and messy pigtails. She let out a small moan as she rolled over, huddling into a fetal position. Ebon looked at her. If his mouth could be seen, a lecherous grin would be across his face.

"Come here, bitch, I need something to take my mind off of things," he purred as he pulled her over to him. She yelled, trying resist, but got a punch in the ribs. "Shut-up, bitch," Ebon said coldly as he pulled the girl towards him and laid on top of her.

Across town, Bullet was walking at a brisk pace, heading towards Ebon's safe house. 'Did Ebon sound worried?' she thought to herself. 'Ebon's never worried... This must be serious.' Suddenly a sound pulled her out of her thoughts. She spun around. Nothing was there. She shook her head and continued walking.

'Even I'm getting jumpy,' she thought to herself. 'What's wrong with me?' She kept walking until she was about a block away from Ebon's. Then she heard the sound again. She spun around and spotted a black bird. Bullet let out a sigh of aggravation and pointed her finger at the bird. There was a bang and a bullet fly towards the bird.

But before the bullet could hit the bird a hand snatched the bullet out of the air with superhuman speed. Bullet gasped and looked up. Static was hanging off the side of a building, his right hand swirling with static electricity, holding himself to the building, and his left hand holding the bullet. He slowly looked up at Bullet.

"You seriously aren't trying to hurt my crow, now are you?" Static growled in an almost animal voice. Bullet just smirked at him.

"Catching bullets isn't the smartest thing to do." She pointed both index fingers at Static and fired, twin bullets flying at him. Static merely kicked off the wall of the building and flipped through the air, landing on the ground. He dusted himself off with his hands. He held up his left hand and showed it to Bullet as it healed, the blood drying up and the hole sealing.

"Mother fucker, die!" Bullet shouted. She started to shoot twin shots at Static, who merely dodged them one at a time. Then, Static stopped dodging them and let them hit him. He started walking towards Bullet, letting the multiple shots hit him. Bullet started to become more and more frantic, backing up as Static kept moving forward.

"You aren't scared, are you?" Static whispered as he was about a foot away. He suddenly lunged forward and grabbed Bullet's right wrist.

_Bullet pointed at Static's head. "Good-bye," she whispered sweetly._

With a shout of rage, Static gave Bullet's wrist a mighty twist. The bone cracked and Bullet let out a small gasp.

"Hurt's, doesn't it?" Static murmured. "Just think how it feels when it's your whole arm." Bullet's eyes flashed and she delivered a savage kick to Static's head. Static stumbled back and regained his composure. He stood up and cracked his neck back into place.

"That hurt," he said with a sinister smile. Black lightning swirled around his arms and traveled to his hands, swirling around his knuckles. Static ran forward, dodged a kick from Bullet, and delivered a savage punch to her jaw, the dark electricity electrocuting her. Bullet stumbled backwards, her face smoking a bit, and was treated to another punch, this one in the gut. Static kept punching her until she stumbled back against a building wall.

"Trapped...nowhere to go..." Static whispered in a low and menacing tone. Bullet frantically held out her left hand, all five fingers pointed at Static.

"JUST DIE!" she shouted as bullets erupted from her fingers in a machine gun fashion. Static held up his hand and threw out a wave of electricity. The black electricity caught the bullets and made them stop right about an inch from Static. Bullet kept shooting for a minute until she was worn out. Her hand fell to her side as she panted heavily.

Static waved his hand and the bullets turned around. "Let's see how you like it!" he shouted, and with a flick of his wrist the bullets all flew towards Bullet. They hit her, tearing her up as they pelted her body again and again.

Static sighed as the last of the bullets hit Bullet. There was just one more now. Ebon. Static turned around and began walking towards Ebon's safe house as his crow landed on his shoulder.

Bullet, meanwhile, weakly picked her head and looked at Static.

"_His guide is a crow..."_

Bullet slowly picked up her hand and pointed her index finger at the crow on Static's shoulder. With the last of her strength, she shot a bullet at it.

The bullet hit the crow in the side. It fell from Static's shoulder with a squawk and landed on the ground, writhing in pain. Static fell to his knees as the crow did, holding his head as a searing pain shot through it and traveled to the rest of his body.

"Wha- What is this pain!" he said to himself as he held his head. He looked down to see his crow on the ground, bleeding out of its right side. The wing looked broken and the side looked like a chunk of flesh and feather were missing. Static gingerly picked up the bird, which was still alive miraculously, and cradled it. He stood up and began to walk towards Ebon's safe house.

He had come this far. His sister still needed him. Ebon still needed to pay for what he had done to Static, his family, and the whole city of Dakota. He would pay and Static was going to be the one to make him pay.

With or without mythical crow powers.

Ending notes - Almost finished, one or two more chapters to go. Sorry it took so long to update, but with school, family, and life in general I've been pretty busy. But I will finish this, I promise. As always, reviews are welcome.

Oh, and if any of you _still_ don't know who the girl with Ebon is (though I think it's pretty obvious), her identity will be confirmed in the next chapter.

One more note, I decided to name the chapters. I was going to in the beginning, then decided not to, but now I want to, so meh :P.


	6. Darkness's Demise

Disclaimer - For the sixth time, I don't own Static Shock, The Crow, or any of the characters affiliated with the two. Sheesh...

Ebon was sitting at his desk in his safe house, his back facing the desk. He was looking at the TV monitor that was attached to the wall behind him.

Ebon watched the TV monitor calmly. The TV monitor showed a man walking towards his safe house. He didn't really recognize the man, the security camera had bad quality and he was still a good distance away, but he did recognize one thing. Hitting a button, he zoomed in on the man's shirt. It had a yellow lightning bolt symbol on it.

Suddenly the man looked up at the camera, revealing a ghostly painted face. There was another second as the man stared into the camera, Ebon staring back at him on the TV screen. Then a flash and the camera went dead, the TV screen filled with static. Ebon sighed and hit a button on his remote to switch cameras. The next camera was out, too. And the next one. And the next one. After flipping through all the cameras, Ebon realized that they were all knocked out.

He let out a shout of frustration. He spun around in his chair and punched his desk. Just who was this guy? Could what Bullet have said be true? Could something magical (and dead) be hunting him? He had had some thoughts on the matter, and even a suspect, but he was starting to have some serious second thoughts about it now.

One thing was for sure, thought. Whatever had killed his men was on its way here.

'Where the hell's Bullet?' Ebon raged silently. 'She's the best fighter out of the three. If she's here, I have a chance.' He got up and created a portal out of the darkness that was his body. He sunk into the portal and arrived in his bedroom, a floor below his office. The girl that was usually with him was on his bed. If Ebon's features could be seen underneath the veil of darkness that covered his face, a lecherous smile would have been seen forming on him.

He walked over to the bed and then jumped on the girl. The girl let out a small scream, but stopped as she remembered where she was. But it was too late. Ebon smacked the girl across the face.

"Shut the fuck up, bitch," he said as he fondled the girl. "I need something before I leave."

But suddenly the room shook slightly and something was heard being broken downstairs. Ebon shrugged and continued. Then there was another crash. With a frustrated sigh, Ebon got up and walked to the center of the room. He made a portal and slowing sunk into it.

The girl on his bed watched him leave, tears in her eyes and slightly rubbing her body, which was sore from being manhandled. She prayed that whoever had come would help her.

Down a few floors, Static was busy tearing stuff up. He had entered the building, which seemed to have five stories, and located the stairs quickly. When he reached the second floor, he had stopped to take a quick brake. He was breathing heavy and his head felt like it was threatening to explode at any minute. His crow was now on his shoulder, perched there carefully, still bleeding from its wounds.

After taking a break for two minutes or so, Static had heard a scream. A scream that soundly remotely familiar to him. Enraged, black lightning had lashed uncontrollably from Static, destroying most of the things in the room. He then ran back to the stairs and up another story.

Looking in the windows he saw a few pictures and other twisted "trophies" in the room. One was the city key, which was now tarnished and thrown on a table, another was a rather large collection of city police badges. There also seemed to be a small sword collection, a collection of pile of firemen hats, and a picture of Ebon and his three night-breed sitting on top of a pile of rubble that remotely looked like city hall. Overtaken with rage again, Static begun tearing up the room with his hands.

Suddenly a dark mass appeared on the roof. Static recognized the portal. It was what Ebon used to get around. Ebon himself floated through the portal and into the room. His eyes widened momentarily then returned to normal as he saw Static.

"Surprise," Static mocked in a low voice.

"Surprise indeed," Ebon replied. "I never dreamed I would get the satisfaction of seeing you die twice!"

"We'll see who dies!" Static shouted, trying to suppress the sound of pain out of his voice. It didn't work entirely.

"Oh, injured now are we?" Ebon mused. He glanced at the bird one Static's shoulder. So, Bullet was on to something about the bird. Maybe she was right about it being what kept Static here.

"Enough! I'm here to do a job and I will do it right!" Static shouted, shifting into a fighting stance and summoning forth the black electricity. His crow attempted to fly off of his shoulder, but instead half-jumped, half-fell to one of the wrecked tables. He hobbled away, trying to get out of the way of the ensuing carnage.

"If you think you can, you cocky fuck!" Ebon shouted back. His body waist up suddenly lunged forward. Static sidestepped and threw a punch. Ebon's hand caught the punch, but he received a nasty aftereffect of an electrical shock. Letting out a growl of anger, Ebon picked Static up and threw him against the wall.

Static got slowly. He then ran towards Ebon, shouting in fury. Ebon's body contracted back to normal size, dodging Static. His two arms stretched and he grabbed a sword in each hand. Static turned and ran towards Ebon again. He threw a fake right jab, which Ebon dodged, and then hit Ebon with a left hook. Dark electricity shot through Ebon's body.

Ebon slowly moved his swords up as Static continued shocking him. Then he swung them, using them to repel Static. Static leapt back, but not quick enough. He received two deep cuts on his left arm. Static waited for a minute, but nothing happened, the blood just kept oozing out of his arm. He was not healing properly.

Ebon, taking advantage of Static's momentarily dazed state, suddenly surged forward, his body growing and stretching as it shot towards Static. He stabbed with one sword and struck Static in the right shoulder. Static gasped as he felt he pain and fell back. He shot out a retaliatory blast of lightning. Ebon ignored it continued stabbing, one sword blow after another.

After about three minutes, Ebon returned to normal form looked down on Static. He was still breathing, despite his multiple wounds that should have killed him. Ebon held the sword above his head, pointing it down at Static, and was ready to strike when he heard a caw. He turned around and saw a crow sitting there. It looked injured as well, but still alive. Ebon then remembered what Bullet had told him.

"_His guide is a crow..."_

Ebon suddenly surged forward, his body stretching and twisting many times. The bird tried to get away, but couldn't make it. Ebon slowly spun around it, then tightened up, squeezing the life out of the bird. The bird struggled, fighting with what little strength it had in it. There were a few crunching sounds as the bird's bones broke and then it stopped breathing.

Static suddenly felt an explosion go off in his head. He screamed as he writhed in pain on the ground. Ebon returned to his normal form and threw the swords aside. He picked up Static and moved through the ceiling to the next floor via portal.

In the bedroom, the girl on the bed looked on as Ebon came back with Static, who was in pain an on the verge of death. Ebon roughly threw Static down and stood back to admire his handiwork. Static slowly looked up at the girl on the bed.

"Sharon...?" he moaned. The girl gasped.

"Oh my god! Virgil, it's you, isn't it?" she gasped. She leapt off the bed to help him but was pushed back by Ebon's stretching hand.

"I don't think so, bitch," he said coldly. "I just thought you might like seeing your brother die." His arm went to Static's neck and he began to squeeze. Slowly, the life began to drain away from Static. He glanced at Sharon as he choked.

"Sharon...I'm glad...you're...alive," he wheezed. Then the rest of the air in his body rushed out in a sickening wheeze and he fell limp. Ebon dropped him and began to laugh over his dead body. Tears began to well up in Sharon's eyes as she watched her brother. She leapt from the bed and knelt beside him.

"You can't die again," she begged. "The city needs you. Virgil, I need you. Come back to us!" Ebon stopped laughing and turned to face Sharon.

"Come here, bitch, this deserves a celebration fuck!" he said coldly. Sharon backed away but was caught by Ebon's stretching arm. She screamed and fell over backwards.

Ebon just laughed and started walking towards her. Suddenly he heard a soft flutter of wings. He turned his head and saw a crow gently land on the headboard of his bed.

"What the fuck-?" he was suddenly cut off by Static, who surged forward, black lightning encasing his body and a shout of pure fury ripping through his throat. He uppercut Ebon under the jaw, throwing him into the ceiling. Ebon quickly formed a portal to move through the ceiling. He closed it up behind him to stop Static from following.

Static looked at Sharon on the bed, a sad smile crossing his lips. "Here," he said as he slid off his trench coat and threw it to her. "Thank-you for bringing me back. I'll be right back." He looked at the ceiling, a fire of anger burning in his eyes and in his soul.

Bringing electricity into his hands, he shot it at the floor and propelled himself towards the ceiling. He then brought up his hands and threw a double-fisted punch into the ceiling.

Ebon was waiting in the next room, but was pushed back as Static suddenly came smashing in from the floor. He continued flying up and brought his foot up in a viciously aimed kick. Ebon flew back, but regained his composure as Static's crow flew through the hole in the floor, squawking madly. Ebon flew forwards, his body expanding. Static merely caught him by the shoulders and spun to his left, throwing Ebon into the roof. He then propelled himself up and threw his whole shoulder into Ebon, dislocating his shoulder, but smashing Ebon into the ceiling.

As Static landed on the ground his shoulder was already popping back into place. Ebon fell to the floor and looked at Static with panic in his eyes.

"How can you be back?" he shouted frantically. "I killed you!"

"How unlucky for you, my work wasn't done yet," Static replied coldly. He walked up to Ebon and picked him up by his shirt collar.

Ebon punched Static in the face, but he ignored it, healing from the injuries quickly. Static trusted himself up, towards the roof, and smashed through it, using Ebon's body as a battering ram. Ebon gasped in pain as blood ran out of his invisible mouth. Static stood there on the roof and picked Ebon up by his head, holding him with a hand on both sides.

"Here's something for you, Ebon!" he shouted. Suddenly all the electricity in Static's body began to surge through Ebon. Ebon shouted in pain as he felt his body began to burn from the inside out. But then he felt something else. Memories suddenly began to flash through his mind. Memories of deep pain, suffering, and death.

"That's it, Ebon!" Static said. "This is how it feels like to be me!" He continued for another minute until Ebon stopped screaming. He hung limply in Static's hands, but was still alive.

"W-w-why...j-just...kill...m-me," he gasped. Static grinned an evil, manic grin and threw his head back. Rapidly the electricity began to surge through Ebon's body once again, renewing his shouts. Electricity kept building in his body until it couldn't hold anymore.

Ebon's body exploded, bloody black chunks flying everywhere. The electricity surged into the sky, lighting up the city despite its black nature. The lighting twisted and curved into a gigantic symbol above Ebon's safe house. It was the symbol of Static, the lightning bolt through the circle. It then shifted with a crack of thunder into the symbol of the crow.

Static watched the symbol fade away after a few minutes. He then leapt down through the holes in the building and landed with a thud next to the bed where Sharon was.

"Virgil!" Sharon jumped off the bed and into Static's arms. Static hugged her in a tight embrace. Sharon began to sob in Static's arms, but Static just stroked her head.

"Don't worry," he whispered. "It's over." After a minute, Sharon lifted her head and looked at Static.

"Do you have to go?" she asked, tears still in her eyes.

"Yes," came the reply. He gently detached himself from Sharon and took a few steps away.

"But we all need you now," she pleaded.

"Don't worry," he said he continued backing up towards the nearest window. "I am always with you." He suddenly turned and jumped out the window, crashing through the glass. His crow flew after him, gliding on the air. Sharon ran to the window and looked down.

There was nothing there.


	7. Epilogue: New Beginnings

Disclaimer - for the last time, I don't own The Crow, Static Shock, or any of the characters

Sharon pulled her jacket collar up as she walked down the sunny street. It had been four months since Ebon died and the dark matter was taken down from the sky. All around her people were rebuilding and repairing, trying to piece their lives back together. Many of the people helping were meta-humans. Now that Ebon was gone it was safe for them to come out again, and many now had come to a new understanding of them. The Justice League also had a dozen members or so around town helping with the reconstruction.

About fifteen minutes after Ebon died, Gear had shown up. He had figured something was happening when he saw Static's symbol and the symbol of the crow over Ebon's safe house. He had flown there right away. When he arrived, he had found the wreaked house and Sharon on the third floor. After comforting her, he had proceeding to search the house until he found the dark matter machine. He then hauled it outside and set it for reverse, sucking the dark matter out of the sky and letting in the sun.

Sharon had told him what happened. He believed her, but when they tried telling everyone else, not many did. The official story was that Ebon and his three henchmen had died of mysterious causes, most likely induced by someone else. No one really questioned who, though, they were just happy that they were dead.

"Hey, Sharon!" Sharon turned around to see Gear and Nightingale, who was wearing extremely dark sunglasses, walking towards her holding hands. They wear dressed in new clothes and looked better kept then they had been while in hiding.

"Oh, hey you guys!" Sharon smiled.

"We're going out for lunch, want to come?" Gear asked. Sharon nodded and the three headed off to lunch at one of Dakota's only restaurants. After walking for about five minutes, they arrived at the _Grilling Hotstreak_, formerly _Ridley's Bar_. They walked in and seated themselves amongst the other filled tables. Minutes later a man with abnormally spiky red and yellow hair came to there table and took their orders. A few minutes later he brought them their food.

"Always thought he'd make a good cook," Gear joked as he ate his food. After they finished they paid their bill and left a gracious tip.

"Same time next week, Hotstreak!" Gear shouted as he left. Hotstreak looked up from the table he was waiting on and nodded to Gear.

"Just get out of here!" he shouted back jokingly. The three laughed and walked out. Once outside, they realized it was raining.

"Geez, what a storm," Nightingale said as she looked up at the sky. Clouds were gathering and lightning was beginning to clash in the air.

"Yeah," Gear agreed. They started to walk away, but Sharon suddenly stopped. She heard a loud clap of thunder and turned around fast enough to just barely see a black lightning bolt flash across the sky.

"It couldn't be," she whispered to herself. She waited a few minutes, staring at the sky, but the black lightning did not return.

"Sharon, come on, we're getting soaked!" Gear shouted. Sharon shook her head.

"Ok, here I come!" she laughed as she ran to catch up with them.

Ending Notes - Alright, there you go. Sorry it took so long to finish, but life catches up to you eventually. Maybe posting two chapters will make it up to you. Hope you like the ending, took me a while to come up with it. I might have a sequel, I have a few ideas floating around. But anyways, till next time!


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